Nonverbal Communication in the Workplace

Nonverbal Communication in the WorkplaceNonverbal Communication in the WorkplaceConsider how body language, posture, eye contact and more can augment or undermine your glaubenszeugnis. Used in conjunction with verbal communication, these tools can help punctuate, reinforce, emphasize, and enliven your message. Nonverbal cues help create shared meaning in any communication. How you communicate nonverbally can mean one thing to you and convey a completely different message to your audience. A young fundraiser had the habit of arriving for a meeting with her boss by spreading herself physically over a large space at the table. This, plus her habit of placing her briefcase and her water bottle on both sides of her on the table, nonplussed her boss. The employee welches getting comfortable but her boss perceived her presence as an invasion of her space. This welches harmful to their relationship and made her boss exceptionally uncomfortable, despite the fact that the boss had all of the p ower organizationally. Different Cues Facial Expression Human faces are incredibly expressive. Emotions such as anger, happiness, hurt, disgust, confusion, and boredom are all easily expressed with facial movements using the eyes, eyebrows, mouth, and other features. Body Language The way a person sits stands moves arms, hands, and feet other subtle movements. Posture How you carry yourself including bearing, stance, rigidity, uprightness. You convey a message via your posture and positioning whether you are leaning back comfortably, sitting rigidly on the edge of your seat, or leaning back with your eyes closed. Eye Contact People often attribute trustworthiness to people who speak while maintaining good eye contact and vice versa. Eye contact is also used to convey interest and emotions, and to promote rapport with the receiver of the message. It is also used to feign interest, mislead, and fake interest. Gestures Hand gestures are especially rich conveyors of communication. T hey punctuate the spoken word and add meaning. Less conscious gestures such as scratching your nose, stroking your hair, tugging on your clothes, placing your hands on your hips, and waving can communicate messages inadvertently. Signs Signs and other articles with words, pictures or symbols are considered a form of nonverbal communication. Clothing and Other Appurtenances (Briefcases, Safety Glasses, Etc.) Types of clothing and your appearance send powerful nonverbal messages. Some of the messages are intentional as when the employee wears a shirt with her favorite athletic team emblazoned on the back or the employee who wears a conservative, business-like suit every day. People may send other messages unintentionally without realizing the impact of their message on the receiver. The wearer of the conservative suits may appear unapproachable when that was leid his intention. He just wanted to appear ready for business, trustworthy, and dependable. The wearer of a low-cut blouse may or may not want her coworkers to find her sexy. At best, however, she sends a mixed message. Office Dcor At work, how you decorate your office also sends messages to employees who enter. Where you place your desk, the distance between your seat and those of visitors, whether furniture separates you from coworkers all speak powerfully. Tone and Other Paralinguistic Aspects Paralinguistics is vocal communication separate from the actual words used and includes such factors as inflection, pitch, pacing, pauses, and loudness. This is critical for telephone as well as in-person interaction. Touch Touch is a powerful method of nonverbal communication. A pat on the back, a hug, a person reaching out to touch your hand in sympathycommunicate with or without any accompanying words. Physical Space Just as your use of physical space in your office telegraphs a message to the receiver, so does the space that you surround yourself with when working or communicating. Most North Americans prefer about 18 inches of space around their physical person. Anything closer is viewed as too close and, especially in a work setting, too intimate. In one of the funniest failed communication efforts ever viewed, a student from another country was trying to explain something to the American universitys registrar. He wanted to get closer to her so that he could help her understand why he was right, a practice that worked well in his country of origin. She wanted her 18 inches of space and was determined to maintain it. So they were literally chasing each other across the office. Every time he moved closer, she moved away. Not every occurrence speaks this loudly, but a persons protection of that private space is swift. When Nonverbal and Verbal Communication Dont Match When a mismatch exists between what you are stating verbally and the nonverbal signals you are sending, nonverbal communication resonates more with your audience. For example, when an employee tells you that everything i s fine, but everything about his tone, facial expression, body posture, and failure to smile dont match, you dont believe the words. Consequently, if your nonverbal communication is going to serve you well as a tool to improve your overall communication, you need to develop an awareness about matching your nonverbal communication to your words. When Nonverbal Communication Matters For good or ill, nonverbal communication can help you or haunt you. Most significantly, recognize the power it has to affect the outcomes of your communication. Whether you are speaking to the whole company at a company meeting, chatting with a coworker on the phone, or talking to your boss in her office, nonverbal communication affects the interaction. Nonverbal communication is also powerful in your day-to-day meetings with coworkers and your passing interactions in the halls of your workplace. Its significant at your lunches either in or outside of your organization. Finally, recognize the power of your nonverbal communication with your company stakeholders, your clients or customers, your vendors, and your professional associates. Matching your nonverbal communication to your spoken words will help them trust you. You can practice and manage your nonverbal communication to convey your messages more effectively. Or, you can allow your nonverbal communication to make you appear ineffective, a sloppy communicator, or an employee whose mixed messages are not trustworthy. Why not use nonverbal communication to your advantage? Its a win for all.

Why Presidential Hopefuls Use Social Media and Not Traditional Media

Why Presidential Hopefuls Use Social Media and Not Traditional MediaWhy Presidential Hopefuls Use Social Media and Not Traditional MediaFollow me on Twitter. Be my Facebook fan. Media pros are constantly making these pitches for followers. So its no shock that the 2016 presidential candidates didthe same. But the candidates did mora than just using social media to post selfies from a rally or to update voters on the location of the next campaign event. Theyre used tools like Twitter and Facebook to avoid the glare of traditional media. While the most successful politicians have long learned how to use media to win elections, social media takes their efforts into overdrive. But theres important information thats lost along the way. Social Media Allows the Candidates to Be Instantaneous Sure, holding a news conference to make a campaign announcement looks presidential. You get to stand at a lectern, ideally with an American flag over your shoulder. Its one way to allow the voters t o get used to the idea of landseeing you in power. But thats becoming a relic. Its a lot faster to post what you want to say online, especially if youre targeting an opponent. Republican presidential candidate Marco Rubio tweeted on March 2 TwoWordTrump Con Artist. While Rubio has elaborated on that thought elsewhere, he didnt need to schedule a news conference, set up a sound system and alert the media to make that claim publicly. He sent it out to his 1.3 million Twitter followers in an instant, hoping it would be retweeted around the country before his GOP rival Donald Trump would have a chance to respond. Candidates Can Hide Behind Their Accusations Donald Trump was already a master at personally using the media to his advantage. But he was also an expert at using social media to further his campaign. I will be using Facebook and Twitter to expose dishonest lightweight Senator Marco Rubio. A record no-show in Senate, he is scamming Florida, read a Trump Tweet on March 7. Des pite Twitters 140-character limit, Trump was able to describe Rubio as dishonest and lightweight and accuse him of holding the record for Senate absences while scamming people in Rubios home state of Florida. Trump got a lot of content in that one tweet. The biggest benefit wasthat Trump didnt have to immediately answer for what he said. At a press conference, pesky news reporters would ask him to back up his accusations with facts. Why is Rubio dishonest? Are his absences from the Senate, which are common for a member of Congress running for president, really record-setting? How is Florida being scammed? Using social media allows a candidate like Trump to avoid answering those questions. Its like lighting a stick of dynamite and then running for cover before the explosion. The candidate is safe while the rest of the political scene blows up. Candidates Can Make Vague Promises Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton may be mora used to the pitfalls of the traditional m edia spotlight than any other candidate. She was with husband Bill Clinton during all of his controversies starting with his 1992 presidential race, when most Americans didnt even have Internet access, through the White House years before launching her own political campaigns. So when she tweeted on March 4 Lets put the dream of starting and running a thriving small geschftsleben within reach of every American, it sounded great. Even the Republican candidates would agree with her idea. But the problem is its emptiness. While Twitter or even Facebook isnt a place for detailed policy discussions, voters arent likely to see much value in a tweet supporting small business without some meat behind it. This dream might mean making bank loans more availableor giving small businesses tax credits. We dont know because she didnt say. After a few days, the Clinton tweet had nearly 1,000 re-tweets and 2,500 likes, so someone appreciated what she typed. Still, those are paltry numbers compared t o her more than 5 million Twitter followers. But if the message resonates that Clinton is for small business, then its a victory for her even if voters dont know the details. Why This Trend Is Bad for the Election Process Social media has definitely altered the 2016 presidential election and it may have changed politics forever. Without sounding like a curmudgeon, its hard to see the merits of social media in advancing the political process, other than to simply deliver updates and photos from the campaign trail. There were undoubtedly critics when TV replaced newspapers as the medium of choice when covering the candidates. Worthy, smart politicians had to worry about their physical appearance, their voice and the ability to make their proposals brief and easily understandable to the masses. But the benefit of TV was that viewers could look into the eyes of the candidates. Famously, in the 1960 presidential race, viewers who watched the first televised presidential debate liked what they saw in John F. Kennedy compared to Richard M. Nixon. They believed Kennedy won the debate, in contrast to those who listened to it on theradio who believed Nixon had prevailed. So TV may have altered the 1960 race. But whether it was Nixon later saying I am not a crook. during the Watergate scandal or President Bill Clinton saying, I did not have sex with that woman, referring to Monica Lewinsky, there is value in witnessing these historic moments with your own eyes. In contrast, social media can easily become a propaganda tool rather than a way to inform the public. Its not the fault of Twitter, Facebook or other platforms, its just how politicians manage to manipulate reality to further their own ambitions. Social Media Doesnt Reach Everybody You might be surprised that for all the talk of social media reaching everybody right in the palm of their hand, the fact is it doesnt. There are millions of people who are missing a candidates message. Trump has between 6 and 7 million followers on Twitter. That large number is a reason to brag, at least in terms of social media. But consider these numbers During a typical week of 2016, the three broadcast TV networks evening newscasts reached a combined audience of nearly 25.5 million viewers. Trumps Twitter following doesnt look nearly so large. If he did an interview solely on the third-place CBS Evening News with Scott Pelley, these weekly ratings show that Trump would reach 7.6 million viewers, more than his Twitter following. Other politicians have a smaller reach. President Obamas Twitter following is roughly 6 million, Clintons is 5 million and others, such as Democrat Bernie Sanders have between 1 and 2 million. In contrast, pop music star Taylor Swift has 72 million Twitter followers, so you can see that the presidential campaign is operating in just a small corner of the social media universe. Social Media Doesnt Allow for Many Questions of the Candidates Political candidates dont have to a nswer questions when they use social media. Thats just the way they like it, but that leaves voters without critical information they need before they fill out their ballot. When Republican candidate Ted Cruz posted on Facebook on March 4 For 40 years, Donald Trump has been part of the corruption in Washington that youre angry about... before linking to an article in the Conservative political publication The Weekly Standard that touted Cruzs debate performance. But there was little evidence provided that tied Trump to corruption, particularly in Washington, where Trump has never served. A similar post from the same day showed a Cruz interview on CNN, but that totenstill didnt provide complete facts to back up his claim. That post contained a comment from a reader saying Cruz you are in the middle of that Washington corruption... which the Cruz campaign definitely didnt want to see, but it too did nothing to provide an argument about anyones alleged corruption. Thats why traditional reporters are so needed. They may be accused of bias when its convenient for politicians to do so, but they are fact-checkers. They can also dig for previous interviews when a candidate said the opposite of what he or she issaying now. Its then up to voters how to use that information when making their decision. But the voters cant make an informed choice without knowing all of this. What the Future Holds for Presidential Races Back in the days of Ronald Reagan and Bill Clinton, media critics used to moan over the seven-second sound bites on TV. Today, those seven seconds sound like an eternity to make a point. Reagan and Clinton were both considered to be masters at communicating in a face-to-face way. Its hard to know how they would have handled a smartphone. Whether its school bullies or political bullies, social media allows people to send outrageous, hurtful and false posts. Politicians didnt need a new tool for lying, but they sure have found it. Its hard to imagine a ret urn to respectful disagreements over the issues when personal attacks are what will get attention. If seven-second bites are too long, someday a 140-character tweet may seem long-winded. That could mean emoticons become the way to reach the voters who politicians want to sway.

Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) and Employment

ritterlich Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) and EmploymentFair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) and EmploymentWhen employers conduct acheck of your hintergrund(including leistungspunkt, criminal, and past employer checks) using a third party, the background check is covered by The Fair Credit Reporting Act of 1970 (FCRA). Below, learn mora about FCRA, and how it impacts any background checks done by employers. Also read below for more general information about background checks, and your rights as related to background checks. Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) The Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) is federal legislation meant to promote fair, accurate, and private background checks and other consumer reports. FCRA oversees the collection and use of consumer leistungspunkt information. hintergrund Check A background check is a review of someones records. behauptung reports can include credit checks, driving records, criminal background information, and other documents that show a history of the employee. Employers usually, though not always, conduct some sort of background check on job seekers through a third party organization and they may not check on all elements of your background. Typically, they only conduct checks on people who are far along in the application process. A background check helps an employer to verify information shared by a job seeker and to uncover any vulnerabilities such as indebtedness or a criminal history that might make it more likely that the candidate would act unethically on the job. Many employers use a third party to conduct a background check. When they do this, they must adhere to FCRA regulations. Below is a list of types of background checks Credit checkEmployment history verificationDrug testsCriminal recordsAcademic history verificationDriving record Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) and Employment FCRA shapes the way employers can ask for, receive, and use a background check from a third party. Employers are subject to cer tain expectations and laws before reviewing any consumer report in the case of hiring new employees. Before an employer can get a consumer report for employment purposes, they must notify you in writing and get your written consent. If an employer decides not to hire you because of your report, they must give you a pre-adverse action disclosure that includes a copy of the report and a copy of your rights. They must then give you notice that they have decided not to hire you and let you know the name and address of the Consumer Reporting Agency and information on your right to dispute the report. If an employer is asking a third party company to provide an investigative report - a report based on personal interviews concerning a persons character, general reputation, personal characteristics, and lifestyle then they must also tell the applicant or employee of his or her right to a description of the nature and scope of the investigation. A person also has the rights to all records in his or her name and can ask the credit reporting agency to disclose their file. He or she can ask for a credit score, dispute inaccuracies or confusion, or seek damage from companies that violate his or her rights. FCRA and State Law While the FCRA is a federal law, many states have their own laws when it comes to consumer reports. As a result, a person may have more rights under state law depending on their jurisdiction. For example, according to court check,New York law states (a) No consumer reporting agency shall report or maintain in the file on a consumer, information (1) relative to an arrest or a criminal charge unless there has been a criminal conviction for such offense, or unless such charges are still pending. (f) (1) Except as authorized under paragraph two of this subdivision, no consumer reporting agency may make any consumer report containing any of the following items of information. (v) records of conviction of crime which, from date of disposition, release, o r parole, antedate the report by more than seven years. Consult the court check site and yourstate department of laborfor information on laws in your location. Illegal Use of Background Checks Employers cannot use background checks to discriminate. Hiring discrimination refers to an employer making a hiring decision based on race, national origin, sex, religion, disability, genetic information, or age. If you suspect a background check by an employer has been used in a discriminatory way, contact theEqual Employment Opportunity Commission(EEOC). Saying No to a Background Check Background checks are becoming more and more common among employers during the job hiring process. While you can say no to a background check, an employer may choose not to hire you because of this. However, if you are asked to fill out information for a background check very early on in the process (such as during an initial interview), and are uncomfortable with that, you could always ask if you coul d fill out the form after the interview. You can ask to fill it out once you and the employer have both decided whether you are moving forward in the job hiring process. However, keep in mind that the employer could reject that request. Generally, prepare for a number of requests for background searches during your job search process. Preparing for a Background Check Are youready for an employer to check your background? If you are job searching, its a good idea to know about any red flags that might be on your record, so you can plan on how to handle them. The best way to prepare for an employment background checkis to be aware of the information that an employer might find - in advance. Request a free copy of your credit report from a reporting agency so you know its contents. Contact the agency to correct any erroneous information. If you are concerned about other aspects of your background, consider running an online search on your background to anticipate any problem areas. If you have used drugs in the recent past, review information regarding drug testing to anticipate any issues. You will need to decide whether to preemptively volunteer any information regarding red flags that will show up in a background check. There is no imperative to share information that may detract from your candidacy unless you are directly questioned about that aspect by an employer. If you do decide to explain any issues, you should generally wait until an employer mentions that they are conducting a background check and requests your permission to proceed or at least until you have made a favorable impression through the interview process. Keep your explanations short and focus on how you have made changes to overcome any problems. For example, if your credit score is low but impacted by a spouse and you have subsequently been separated, you might mention those circumstances.